Somerset County, Pennsylvania Population and Demographics

In this article, we'll explore the population statistics for Somerset County, Pennsylvania, including popular demographics data like median age, number of households, household income, gender, employment and unemployment rates, occupations, religion, and more.

We are using the latest American Community Survey (ACS) 5-Year survey data from the US Census Bureau, which is accurate up to 2021.

Table of Contents

Population

There is a lot of data that lets us see how many people live in Somerset County, Pennsylvania. The most basic data is the total population, which is the total number of people living in Somerset County, Pennsylvania. The estimated population of Somerset County, Pennsylvania is 74,331 people, with a median age of 46.2.

We can look at the total population in Somerset County over the last 5 years to see how much it has changed.

Year Population Change 5-Year Change
2021
74,331
+0.66%
-1.70%
2020
73,844
 -0.7% -
2019
74,361
 -0.78% -
2018
74,949
 -0.89% -
2017
75,619
 - -

Population of Somerset County, Pennsylvania by Race and Ethnicity

We can also look at how the population has changed over the last 5 years by each of the race/ethnicity types as defined by the US Census Bureau.

Race 2021 2017 Change
White
93.6%
94.6%
 -1.06%
Black/African American
2.3%
2.6%
 -11.54%
Native
0%
0.1%
 -100.00%
Hispanic
1.6%
1.4%
 +14.29%
Asian
0.4%
0.4%
 0.00%
Hawaiian/Pacific Islander
0%
0%
 0.00%
Two Or More Races
1.9%
0.8%
 +137.50%
Other
0.2%
0%
 0.00%

This data can be very important for a number of reasons, including social and economic research, planning and development, and marketing to a multi-cultural population.

Note that the Native group includes both Native American and Alaskan Native people.

Population of Somerset County, Pennsylvania by Age and Gender

The age and gender of a population is another interesting demographic statistic because it lets us track trends in the population over time. For example, we can see how the population has changed over the last 5 years by median age as a total, and also by male and female.

Year Total Male Female
2021 46.2 0% 44.5 +0.23% 48.3 -0.41%
2020 46.2 +0.22% 44.4 +0.45% 48.5 +0.41%
2019 46.1 +0.44% 44.2 +0.68% 48.3 +0.42%
2018 45.9 0% 43.9 0% 48.1 +0.63%
2017 45.9 - 43.9 - 47.8 -

The median age of Somerset County, Pennsylvania gives you an idea of the age distribution, with half of the population being older than the median age and half being younger.

This can then be used to infer and compare against birth rates, parent ages, and more metrics to understand the population. For example, an increasing median age indicates an aging population, which can be a sign of a declining population in terms of birth rates and workforce participation.

Age 2021 2017
(Years) Male Female Male Female
0 to 9 3,508 +4.88% 3,734 -8.54% 3,681 3,425
10 to 19 4,270 -5.36% 3,699 +0.79% 4,035 3,725
20 to 29 4,856 -3.9% 3,609 -4.94% 4,667 3,434
30 to 39 5,004 -1.58% 3,868 -2.42% 4,922 3,773
40 to 49 5,345 -4.62% 4,293 -3.8% 5,102 4,125
50 to 59 6,278 -6.69% 5,657 -7.02% 5,863 5,269
60 to 69 5,369 +7.08% 5,107 +3.89% 5,757 5,308
70+ 4,659 +6.92% 6,363 -1.66% 4,989 6,256

Median Household Income

The latest median household income of Somerset County, Pennsylvania is $54,332.00.

In simple terms, the median income is the middle income of a group of people. Half of the people in the group make more than the median income, and half make less. The median income is a good indicator of the overall income of a group of people, and can be used to compare against other metrics such as the average income, per capita income, and more.

Median Income by Age

We can also look at the median income by age to see how the median income varies by age, and how it compares to the overall median income for Somerset County.

  • Under 25
    $40,077.00
  • 25 to 44
    $72,507.00
  • 45 to 64
    $64,030.00
  • 65 and over
    $39,344.00

Average Household Income

Whenever we ask what is the average household income in Somerset County, we are actually talking about the mean household income.

This is calculated by adding up all the incomes of all the households in Somerset County, and then dividing that number by the total number of households. This is a good way to get a general idea of the average income of a group of people, but it can be skewed by a very high or very low incomes.

The average household income of Somerset County, Pennsylvania is currently $69,336.00.

In terms of accurately summarizing income at a geographic level, the median income is a better metric than the average income because it isn't affected by a small number of very high or very low incomes.

If you had an area where the average income was greater than the median, it can mean that there is significant income inequality, with income being concentrated in a small number of wealthy households.

2.86% of households in Somerset County are classed as high income households (making $200,000+ per year).

Household Income Tiers

The US Census Bureau divides households into income tiers based on the median income for the area. This is a good way to compare the income of Somerset County against other areas.

  • Less than $24,999
    20.00%
  • $25,000 to $49,999
    25.16%
  • $50,000 to $74,999
    19.36%
  • $75,000 to $99,999
    15.23%
  • $100,000 to $149,999
    13.84%
  • $150,000 to $199,999
    3.55%
  • $200,000 or more
    2.86%

Per Capita Income

The per capita income in Somerset County is $28,330.00.

Per capita income is the average income of a person in a given area. It is calculated by dividing the total income of Somerset County by the total population of Somerset County.

This is different from the average or mean income because it includes and accounts for all people in Somerset County, Pennsylvania, including people like children, the elderly, unemployed people, retired people, and more.

Education Levels

We can also look at the education levels in Somerset County to see how many people have a high school degree, a bachelor's degree, or a graduate degree.

Educational attainment is a good indicator of the overall education level of a population, and can be used to compare against other metrics such as the average income, per capita income, and more to see how education levels affect income, unemployment rates, and more.

  • Master's degree or higher
    6.73%
  • Bachelor's degree
    16.64%
  • Some college or associate's degree
    7.83%
  • High school diploma or equivalent
    66.35%
  • Less than high school diploma
    2.45%

Employment

Employment rates are all based around the total population in Somerset County that are over the age of 16.

The total population of Somerset County over the age of 16 is 62,347.

Of those people, a total of 55.80% are working or actively looking for work. This is called the labor force participation rate.

The participation rate is a useful market measure because it shows the relative amount of labor resources available to the economy.

The employment to total population rate in Somerset County is 52.80%.

Employment by Age

We can look at the employment rates by age to see how it compares to the overall employment rate.

Age Population Participation Unemployment Rate
16 to 19 years 2,882 49.80% 15.20%
20 to 24 years 3,851 72.90% 12.20%
25 to 29 years 4,250 72.30% 7.40%
30 to 34 years 4,160 73.60% 8.80%
35 to 44 years 8,839 75.50% 3.40%
45 to 54 years 10,203 74.50% 3.70%
55 to 59 years 5,852 72.20% 3.40%
60 to 64 years 5,818 56.20% 2.70%
65 to 74 years 9,439 22.70% 3.20%
75 years and over 7,053 6.90% 1.20%

Employment by Race

Another very interesting employment statistic we can look at is the employment and unemployment rates by race in Somerset County. The table below shows the rates for each of the ethnicity groups types defined by the US Census Bureau.

Age Population Participation Unemployment Rate
White 58,738 57.30% 5.40%
Black or African American 1,763 2.20% 12.80%
American Indian and Alaska Native 46 15.20% 0.00%
Asian 187 59.90% 0.00%
Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander 18 0.00% 0.00%
Other 362 51.70% 17.10%
Two or more races 1,233 62.80% 1.90%
Hispanic or Latino 955 44.50% 12.70%
Not Hispanic or Latino 58,244 57.40% 5.40%

Occupations

In this section we can look at the most common occupations in Somerset County as well as the gender breakdown and earnings of them.

The total population of civilian employees that are 16 years old or older in Somerset County is 32,901, with median earnings of $34,967.00.

Women in Somerset County, Pennsylvania earning approximately 68.20% of the men's earnings.

Population Earnings
Total 32,901 $34,967.00
Male 17,550 $42,036.00
Female 15,351 $28,658.00

Occupations by Category

In the table below, we can break down the population and earnings even further by occupation. The list of occupation categories below will show you how many people are employed in each category and the median earnings of each profession.

Occupation Employed Earnings
Management 2,725 $49,592.00
Business and Financial 1,296 $59,107.00
Computer and Mathematical 326 $66,339.00
Architecture and Engineering 625 $70,152.00
Life, Physical, and Social Science 88 $48,750.00
Community and Social Service 636 $37,750.00
Legal 222 $63,705.00
Educational and Library 1,446 $41,146.00
Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media 298 $46,591.00
Healthcare Practitioners 2,843 $51,307.00
Healthcare Support 1,202 $26,195.00
Firefighters and Protective Service 240 $16,167.00
Law Enforcement 730 $52,705.00
Food Preparation and Serving 1,980 $11,223.00
Building and Grounds Cleaning 942 $19,615.00
Personal Care and Service 917 $16,449.00
Sales 2,589 $27,280.00
Office and Administrative Support 3,385 $28,739.00
Farming, Fishing, and Forestry 319 $18,750.00
Construction and Extraction 2,401 $46,014.00
Installation, Maintenance, and Repair 1,536 $36,510.00
Production 2,943 $34,515.00
Transportation and Material Moving 1,690 $44,434.00

Occupations by Gender

The table below shows the same occupations from the list above, but we have split them by male and female to see how many male and females work in each occupation, the median earnings, and the male to female ratio of earnings.

That last metric is important because it can be used to look at the gender pay gap between men and women.

Occupation Male Female
Population Earnings Population Earnings
Management 1,787 $53,512.00 938 $46,136.00
Business and Financial 477 $75,368.00 819 $52,730.00
Computer and Mathematical 266 $67,321.00 60 $55,000.00
Architecture and Engineering 567 $71,677.00 58 $36,042.00
Life, Physical, and Social Science 24 $52,917.00 64 $44,881.00
Community and Social Service 237 $45,781.00 399 $35,250.00
Legal 157 $64,473.00 65 $30,208.00
Educational and Library 276 $53,438.00 1,170 $39,167.00
Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media 214 $66,364.00 84 $7,361.00
Healthcare Practitioners 439 $60,104.00 2,404 $48,152.00
Healthcare Support 193 $28,170.00 1,009 $25,886.00
Firefighters and Protective Service 204 $16,944.00 36 $15,000.00
Law Enforcement 620 $53,864.00 110 $39,900.00
Food Preparation and Serving 517 $9,207.00 1,463 $11,919.00
Building and Grounds Cleaning 590 $27,500.00 352 $10,147.00
Personal Care and Service 216 $15,313.00 701 $16,637.00
Sales 1,041 $43,459.00 1,548 $24,058.00
Office and Administrative Support 699 $41,037.00 2,686 $27,263.00
Farming, Fishing, and Forestry 188 $23,580.00 131 $8,155.00
Construction and Extraction 2,357 $46,403.00 44 $30,000.00
Installation, Maintenance, and Repair 1,521 $36,569.00 15 $17,344.00
Production 2,206 $40,535.00 737 $24,850.00
Transportation and Material Moving 1,521 $50,024.00 169 $17,083.00

Households and Family Size

A household defined bu the US Census Bureau is a group of people who occupy a housing unit. A housing unit is a house, apartment, mobile home, group of rooms, or single room occupied as separate living quarters.

There are currently 28,857 households in Somerset County, with an average household size of 2.4 people.

A family is defined as a group of two or more people related by birth, marriage, or adoption who live together in the same household.

There are 19,448 families in Somerset County with an average family size of 2.93 people.

Households by Marital Status

The four categories of household by marital status are:

  • Married-couple family
  • Male householder with no spouse present
  • Female household with no spouse present
  • Nonfamily household

The table below shows the total number of households and families, with the average sizes of each.

Married Male Female Nonfamily
Total Households 15,772 1,344 2,332 9,409
Average Household Size 2.95 3.25 3.11 1.18
Total Families 15,772 1,344 2,332 0
Average Household Size 2.94 2.77 2.91 0

Poverty

Of the 19,448 families in Somerset County, 7.40% are considered to be below the poverty threshold.

The table below shows the latest poverty thresholds in Somerset County:

Household Size Poverty Threshold
1 Person $14,580.00
2 People $19,720.00
3 People $24,860.00
4 People $30,000.00
5 People $35,140.00
6 People $40,280.00
7 People $45,420.00
8 People $50,560.00

Housing

There are 37,769 housing units in Somerset County, Pennsylvania.

The table below shows the split between occupied and vacant units:

Total Percentage
Occupied 28,857 76.40%
Vacant 8,912 23.60%

12.79% of the total 37,769 housing units in Somerset County are rental units. This is approximately 4,830 properties.

For owner-occupied housing units, a total of 23,212 are occupied by the owner - or 61.46% of the total.

Rental Rates

The median rent for a property in Somerset County is $657.00.

In the chart below, we can look at the number of rental properties in Somerset County that fall into a particular rent range. These can then be used to compare with other areas, or to see how they have changed over time.

  • No rent paid
    815
  • Less than $500
    1,140
  • $500 to $999
    3,065
  • $1,000 to $1,499
    552
  • $1,500 to $1,999
    56
  • $2,000 to $2,499
    15
  • $2,500 to $2,999
    0
  • $3,000 or more
    2

Property Value

The median value of a property in Somerset County is $114,700.00.

Just like with rental rates, we can look at the number of properties in Somerset County that fall into a particular value range.

  • Less than $50,000
    3,077
  • $50,000 to $99,999
    6,777
  • $100,000 to $149,999
    5,050
  • $150,000 to $199,999
    3,224
  • $200,000 to $299,999
    3,020
  • $300,000 to $499,999
    1,488
  • $500,000 to $999,999
    467
  • $1,000,000 or more
    109

Property Age

We can also look at the age of properties in Somerset County. The chart below shows the number of properties in Somerset County that fall into a particular age range.

  • 1939 or earlier
    11,268
  • 1940 to 1949
    2,832
  • 1950 to 1959
    3,868
  • 1960 to 1969
    3,185
  • 1970 to 1979
    5,572
  • 1980 to 1989
    3,749
  • 1990 to 1999
    3,829
  • 2000 to 2009
    2,417
  • 2010 to 2013
    1,040
  • 2014 or later
    9

Vehicles per Household

The number of vehicles available per household can be a good indicator of the level of affluence in an area. The chart below shows the number of households in Somerset County that have a particular number of vehicles available.

  • No vehicles available
    1,948
  • 1 vehicle available
    8,631
  • 2 vehicles available
    11,250
  • 3 or more vehicles available
    7,028

Commuting to Work

In this section, we can also look at how people in Somerset County get to work. The chart below shows the number of people in Somerset County that commute to work in a particular way.

24.8 minutes is the average travel time to work for people in Somerset County.

These commute times can be compared to other date like income and educational levels to see how they relate to each other and if there are any trends in the data that might suggest a correlation.

  • Less than 5 minutes
    1,568
  • 5 to 9 minutes
    3,695
  • 10 to 14 minutes
    4,247
  • 15 to 19 minutes
    5,231
  • 20 to 24 minutes
    4,307
  • 25 to 29 minutes
    1,839
  • 30 to 34 minutes
    3,395
  • 35 to 39 minutes
    783
  • 40 to 44 minutes
    661
  • 45 to 59 minutes
    1,889
  • 60 to 89 minutes
    1,202
  • 90 or more minutes
    1,061

Summary

We've covered a LOT of demographic and population data for Somerset County, Pennsylvania in this article! Hopefully you have found it very useful in your research of the area.

If you use any of the data found on this page, please consider linking back to USPopulation.org as the source and if you have any feedback or data requests, click here to contact us.

Places in Somerset County, Pennsylvania

We have data for 32 places in Somerset County, Pennsylvania. Click on a place below to see more information about the demographics of that place.